Automated annotation of a resource on a computer network using a network address of the resource

ABSTRACT

A user provides an annotation, such as text or graphics, in relation to a resource available on a computer network. The annotation is automatically stored and/or retrieved without requiring separate action from the user to accomplish the storage or retrieval. An annotation interface may receive the annotation from the user. The annotation is then stored in association with the user and the network address of the resource. The user&#39;s annotation may be later retrieved and displayed to the user based on the network address of the resource. In one specific embodiment, a browser toolbar receives and displays user annotations associated with Web sites or Web pages to which the user has navigated. Preferably, the annotation interface remains available to the user throughout the time in which the resource is provided. Further controls may enable the user to make an annotation publicly available to others, and to receive annotations from others.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/155,353, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,346,528, filed May 16, 2016, which is acontinuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/743,619, now U.S.Pat. No. 9,342,494, filed Jan. 17, 2013, which is a continuation of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 13/678,201, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,087,033,filed Nov. 15, 2012, which is a divisional of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 11/096,973, filed on Mar. 31, 2005, which is a continuation ofU.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/793,695, now U.S. Pat. No.8,069,194, filed Mar. 4, 2004, the entireties of which are expresslyincorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to the use of resources on a computer network,and more particularly to storage and retrieval of annotations associatedwith resources on a computer network.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Computer networks are well known for providing communication betweendifferent computing systems to enable one system to share a resourcewith another system. For example, a server system may have a resource,such as a document written in a markup language (e.g., html, xml etc.),a data file, a software process, or a hardware device that can beaccessed by a client system over a computer network using a networkaddress that identifies the desired resource in the computer network. Aclient system can request the resource from the server system using thenetwork address of the resource. Computer networks range from local areanetworks to wide area networks to global networks including theInternet. The Internet, in particular, enables computing systems toprovide a wide range of computer resources to users.

In the realm of the World Wide Web (“the Web”), typical computer usersaccess Web pages by instructing a browser operating at their localclient computer to transmit a request for a Web page using a uniformresource locator (“URL”). Domain name servers operating on the Internethelp direct the Web page request to one or more server computers thatcorrespond to the network domain identified in the URL. When the Webpage request is received by the server computers, the markup code thatembodies the Web page is transmitted to the client computer ofrequesting user. The user's browser receives the markup code anddisplays the Web page to the user.

As part of the process of receiving and using resources, such as Webpages, on computer networks, users may have thoughts, form impressions,or think of additional information they would like to store inconnection with the resources being used. For example, a user visiting amerchant Web site may wish to note that the merchant has better pricesor better shipping terms than other merchant Web sites. As anotherexample, a user reading a document on a computer network, such as aproduct manual, may have comments on the instructions provided in themanual and wish to preserve those comments for later retrieval whenagain accessing the manual via the computer network. Because of the highrate at which users may receive and use resources on a computer network,it is difficult and cumbersome for users to store these thoughts,opinions, and information for later retrieval. Users may bookmark a Website, but bookmarking does not preserve the specific thoughts, opinions,and information the user may have had about the Web site. Bookmarks areuseful only for quickly returning to a particular Web site of interest.Alternatively, users may hand write their thoughts, opinions, andinformation on paper, but the user must remember that these annotationsexist and where these annotations are located.

What is needed is a system and method that facilitates the storage andretrieval of annotations that a user may have in regard to a computerresource. In view of the problems and shortcomings noted above, it isapparent that systems and methods that help users store and retrieveannotations associated with computer resources will have significantutility, particularly if the systems and methods require minimal or noeffort on the part of the user.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Disclosed herein are systems and methods that enable a user to annotatea computer resource and automatically store and/or retrieve theannotation without requiring separate action from the user to accomplishthe storage or retrieval. In a typical embodiment, a user annotates aresource on a computer network by providing input, such as text orgraphics, in association with the resource. Specific embodimentsdisclosed herein use the network address that identifies the resourceand the identity of the user to store the annotation for laterretrieval. Automated retrieval of annotations is particularly usefulwhen the user returns to access a previously-annotated resource usingthe network address of the resource.

In one aspect, a method for annotating a resource on a computer networkincludes receiving a network address for the resource on the computernetwork. The method further includes providing an annotation interfaceto a user. The annotation interface is configured to receive anannotation from the user in association with the resource withoutrequiring the user to conclude the annotation with a separate action tohave the annotation stored. The annotation is stored in association withthe user's identity and the network address of the resource. Incircumstances where the user accesses the resource at a later time, theuser's annotation may be automatically retrieved and displayed to theuser based on the network address of the resource.

Annotations received from the user may be in the form of text orgraphics, and may include a link to another resource on the computernetwork. Preferably, the annotation interface remains available to theuser throughout the time in which the resource is provided to the user.

Annotations received from the user may be stored in an annotationdatabase. Moreover, previously-stored annotations displayed to the usermay be modified by the user. The modified annotations are then stored inthe annotation database in association with the user and the networkaddress of the resource.

One exemplary form of an annotation interface is a toolbar that appearson a display to a user. The toolbar may include an annotation fieldconfigured to receive an annotation from the user. If the annotationincludes text or graphics that occupy more space than can be displayedin the annotation field, a scroll bar control may be provided to theannotation field. The toolbar may also provide one or more controls thatallow the user to expand the annotation field. Another control may beprovided for opening a new annotation field separate from the toolbar,such as a separate window, for displaying an annotation to the user andreceiving new annotations or modifications from the user. In yet otherembodiments, the display size of the toolbar may be adjusted accordingto the size of the annotation in the annotation field, up to a maximumdisplay size, if such is defined.

One or more controls may be provided to enable the user to make anannotation publicly available to others. A further control may enable auser to receive public annotations from others that were previouslyreceived in association with the resource.

A user annotation of a resource may be stored in association with all orsome of the network address that identifies the resource. For example, aresource may be one of a plurality of resources that share a common basenetwork address, such as a top level domain. In some embodiments, anannotation may be stored in association with the user and the basenetwork address of the resource, rather than the full network addressthat identifies the specific resource. Computer processes are providedfor analyzing the network address of the resource to identify the basenetwork address of the resource.

An annotation may be automatically stored when the resource is no longerbeing provided to the user. For example, a user-entered annotationassociated with a Web page may be automatically stored when the usernavigates to a new Web page at a different Web address. An annotationmay also be automatically stored at the time the annotation is beingreceived from the user.

Because annotations are stored in association with the user, a reportmay be provided to the user that identifies some or all of the resourcesthat the user has annotated. The report may be configured such that theuser can modify annotations in the report by changing or deleting theannotation. The modified annotation is then stored (or annotation isremoved, in the case of deletion). The modifications or deletions may beseparately recorded so that the user can view a history of annotations,if desired.

In another aspect, a computer system is described herein for annotatinga resource on a computer network. The computer system may include anannotation database and an annotation server in communication with theannotation database. The annotation server is configured to receive anetwork address of a resource on the computer network, receive anannotation of the resource from a user, and store the annotation in theannotation database in association with the user and the network addressof the resource.

The annotation server may receive the network address of the resourcefrom either the user or from another source on the computer network,such as the resource server that is providing the resource to the user.A user may request a resource by transmitting the network address of theresource to the resource server, and at the same or subsequent time,transmit the network address to the annotation server. In such case, theannotation server may receive the network address of the resource atapproximately the same time that the network address is received by theresource server. User annotations received thereafter are stored in theannotation database in association with the identity of the user and thenetwork address of the resource.

In yet another aspect, a computer-readable medium may be provided withcontents that cause a computing system to operate in accordance with themethods and systems described herein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing aspects and many of the attendant advantages of thisinvention will become more readily appreciated as the same become betterunderstood by reference to the following detailed description, whentaken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a pictorial diagram showing an exemplary environment in whichembodiments of the invention may be implemented;

FIG. 2 is a flow diagram of one exemplary method for storage andretrieval of user annotations provided in association with a resource ona computer network;

FIG. 3A is a block diagram showing some of the components that may beincorporated in a client system as depicted in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3B is a block diagram showing some of the components that may beincorporated in a resource server as depicted in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3C is a block diagram showing some of the components that may beincorporated in an annotation server as depicted in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4A is a display diagram showing a typical Web browser having anannotation toolbar with a control operable by a user to reveal anannotation field of the toolbar;

FIG. 4B is a display diagram showing the Web browser depicted in FIG. 4Awherein the user has operated the control and revealed the annotationfield of the toolbar;

FIG. 5 is a display diagram showing a typical Web browser having anannotation toolbar with an annotation field, in which the display sizeof the toolbar is adjusted based on the size of the annotation in theannotation field, and also showing controls operable by a user to makean annotation available to the public or view public annotations byothers;

FIG. 6 is a display diagram showing the Web browser depicted in FIG. 5wherein a user has activated the controls to make the annotation publicand receive public annotations from others;

FIG. 7 is a display diagram showing a typical Web browser having anannotation toolbar with an annotation field and a control that has beenoperated by a user to open a new annotation field separate from thetoolbar for displaying an annotation to the user; and

FIG. 8 is a display diagram showing a typical Web browser in which areport is displayed to the user showing the resources and annotationsassociated therewith currently stored in association with the user.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

FIG. 1 provides an exemplary overview of one computing environment inwhich embodiments of the invention may be implemented. The depictedenvironment includes a resource server 10 and one or more client systems12, 14 communicatively connected by a network 16. The client system 12is shown associated with a user 18. Similarly, the client system 14 isshown associated with a user 20.

Further depicted in FIG. 1 is an annotation server 22 that iscommunicatively connected by the network 16 to the client systems 12, 14and to the resource server 10. The annotation server 22 is also shownwith a direct communication link to an annotation database 24.

As will be described below in regard to exemplary embodiments shownherein, the resource server 10 is configured to provide one or moreresources to the users 18, 20 that are operating the client systems 12,14, respectively. The resources at the resource server 10 areaddressable by a network address that identifies the particularresources in the network 16. Such resources may include, but are notlimited to, Web pages identified by a network address in the form of aUniform Resource Locator (“URL”), a document that may be identified andobtained by a File Transfer Protocol (“FTP”) command, a file located ona local or remote computing system, a software process or hardwaredevice that is addressable by a network address, etc.

It should be understood that the term “network address” used inconnection with different embodiments of the invention may refer to anycomputer address that identifies a resource on a computing system. Theresource may be located on a local computing system and thus identifiedby a local computer address (e.g., drive identifier and file/deviceidentifier), or the resource may be located on a remote computing systemand thus identified by a remote computer address (e.g., network domainidentifier and file/device identifier).

A user, such as user 18, may operate a client system, such as clientsystem 12, to request a resource from the resource server 10 via thenetwork 16. The network 16 may be a Local Area Network (“LAN”), a largernetwork such as a Wide Area Network (“WAN”), or a collection ofnetworks, such as the Internet. Protocols for network communication,such as TCP/IP, are well known to those skilled in the art of computernetworks. As further described herein, the user 18 may also operate theclient system 12 to communicate annotations of a resource to theannotation server 22 for storage in the annotation database 24.Previously-stored annotations stored in the annotation database 24 maybe later retrieved and displayed to the user, particularly when the useris again accessing the resource. As will be appreciated by those skilledin the art and others, FIG. 1 provides a simplified example of just onesuitable computing environment for implementing embodiments of thepresent invention, and does not limit the invention thereto. In someembodiments, the computing systems shown, e.g., the resource server 10,the client system 12, and/or the annotation server 22, may beimplemented in a single computing system and thus not require networkprotocols for communication between the combined systems.

When software formed in accordance with the invention is implemented inone or more computer systems, for example of the type illustrated inFIG. 1, the computer systems provide a way for users to access computerresources, compose and record annotations thereto, and retrievepreviously-stored annotations of resources. Allowing a user to annotatea computer resource enhances the user's computing experience bypreserving the thoughts, opinions, and information the user may have inregard to the resource.

Prior to discussing exemplary computer architectures for implementing aclient system, resource server, and annotation server as depicted inFIG. 1, a discussion of one exemplary method for implementing anembodiment of the invention is provided. FIG. 2 is a flow diagram of oneexemplary method 30 for storage and retrieval of user annotationsprovided in regard to a computer resource. The method 30 begins at block32 by receiving a network address of a resource on a computer network.In some embodiments, the network address may be received directly fromthe client system of the user (or a proxy server supporting the clientsystem). In the context of FIG. 1, a client system 12 may request aresource from the resource server 10 by transmitting the network addressof the resource to the resource server 10. At the same or subsequenttime, the client system 12 may transmit the network address to theannotation server 22. In other embodiments, the client system 12 maycommunicate only with the resource server 10, and along with providingthe requested resource to the user, the resource server 10 maycommunicate the network address of the requested resource to theannotation server 22 with an identification of the user receiving theresource.

In any event, once the network address of the resource is received,e.g., by the annotation sever 22, one or more computer processesoperating at the annotation server 22 may analyze the address of theresource to identify the network domain of the resource. As will beunderstood from the description herein, an annotation of the resourcemay be stored in connection with all or some of the network address ofthe resource. In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 2, it is assumedthat a user's annotation of a resource is stored in association with theportion of the network address that identifies the network domain of theresource. In other embodiments, a different portion or all of thenetwork address may be used for storing the annotation. Furthermore, itwill be appreciated that computer processes operating at the annotationserver 22, such as the network address analysis noted above, may operateinstead at the client system 12.

A requested resource may be a document stored in Adobe® portabledocument format (“PDF”), for example. The network address of the PDFdocument may be a URL to a Web site that contains the document. In theexamples shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, as well as FIGS. 5 through 7, theclient system 12 (or a proxy server operating with the client system 12)communicates the URL “www.cordlessphone.com/product_manual.pdf” to aresource server at “www.cordlessphone.com” using hypertext transferprotocol. The computer process referenced in block 34 of FIG. 2 parsesthe URL to identify the network domain, which in this example is“www.cordlessphone.com”. The network domain could also be furtherreduced to “cordlessphone.com” so that annotations of“wwwl.cordlessphone.com”, “www2.cordlessphone.com”, etc., are allaggregated under the same network domain. In other embodiments, theentire network address (e.g., entire URL or other computer address) maybe used for storing annotations of the resource.

Returning to FIG. 2, once the network domain of the resource isidentified, the network domain is used to query an annotation database(block 36) to determine whether the user has previously stored anannotation in association with the network domain of the resource. If anannotation for the resource exists in the annotation database, theannotation is retrieved for display to the user.

At block 38, the resource is provided to the user. At the same orsubsequent time (in this example), the user is provided an annotationinterface at block 40 that displays the annotation (if any) retrievedfrom the annotation database at block 36. As will be depicted anddescribed hereafter, the annotation interface may (in one embodiment) bein the form of a toolbar that appears on a display to the user. Thetoolbar may include an annotation field that displays the annotation tothe user. The annotation field is also preferably configured to receiveannotations from the user, either as a modification of apreviously-entered annotation, or an entry of a new annotation in theannotation field.

At decision block 42, the method 30 determines whether provision of theresource to the user has terminated. For example, in the case ofproviding a Web page resource, when the user navigates to a new Web pagehaving a different network address (URL), the prior Web page is nolonger provided to the user and is replaced by the new Web page. Inother cases, the user may close, terminate, or otherwise disable theapplication (e.g., Web browser) using the resource. In any event, aslong as the resource is continuing to be provided to the user, themethod 30 continues to repeat the query in decision block 42.

Once the provision of the resource to the user has terminated, themethod 30 proceeds to store the user's annotation of the resource (whichmay be entered in the annotation field noted above). The annotation isstored in the annotation database in association with the user and thenetwork address of the resource. In the case where the user terminatedprovision of the resource in favor of accessing a new resource (e.g.,navigating to a new Web page), the method 30 returns to block 34 toanalyze the network address of the newly requested resource to identifythe network domain of the resource. The method 30 then repeats theactions following block 34 for the newly-requested resource. Where apreviously-stored annotation was retrieved and modified by the user, themodifications may be stored as such so that, if desired, the user canretrieve and view a history of the annotations and modifications enteredover time.

It should be understood that implementations of the invention are notlimited to the method as shown in FIG. 2. Other methods may includeadditional actions or eliminate some of the actions shown in FIG. 2. Forexample, as noted above, embodiments of the invention that use the fullnetwork address of the resource instead of just the network domain mayeliminate the analysis performed in block 34. In some embodiments, auser may annotate a resource without necessarily receiving the resourceor may receive the resource from someone else. In that regard, provisionof the resource in block 38 may be eliminated.

In other embodiments, annotations received from a user may be stored atthe same time while the annotations are being received from the user. Insuch case, the query performed in decision block 42 to determine whetherthe provision of the resource has been terminated is no longerapplicable. Storage of the annotation has already occurred. In yet otherembodiments, the annotation may be stored according to a predeterminedschedule, such as every 5 seconds (for example), especially whenmodifications or new annotations are being entered, with perhaps a finalautomatic storage occurring when the resource is no longer beingprovided.

The actions shown in FIG. 2 may also be performed in a different orderthan shown. For example, provision of the resource to the user in block38 may be performed before the annotation database is queried in block36. As another example, the annotation interface provided to the user inblock 40 may be provided before the network address of the resource isreceived in block 32. The method depicted in FIG. 2 provides just oneexample of the manner in which an embodiment of the invention may beimplemented.

Turning now to FIGS. 3A-3C, exemplary computer architectures for theresource server 10, client system 12 shown in FIG. 1, and annotationserver 22 are described. FIG. 3A depicts an exemplary computerarchitecture for a client system, such as the client system 12, suitablefor use in implementing one or more embodiments of the invention. Ofcourse, those skilled in computers will appreciate that the clientsystem 12, as well as the resource server 10 and annotation server 22described below, may include greater or fewer components than thoseshown in FIGS. 3A-3C.

The client system 12 shown in FIG. 3A is connected to the network 16(FIG. 1) using a network interface 60. The network interface 60 includesthe necessary hardware and software to allow the client system 12 tocommunicate with other computing devices connected to the network 16using one or more suitable communication protocols, such as TCP/IP.

The client system 12 in FIG. 2 includes a processor 50, a memory 52, avideo display adapter 54, a computer-readable medium drive 56 (e.g.,disk drive), and an input/output interface 58, all communicativelyconnected together and to the network interface 60 by a communicationbus 62. The memory 52 generally comprises RAM, ROM, and/or permanentmemory. The memory 52 stores an operating system 64 for controlling thegeneral operation of the client system 12. The operating system 64 maybe a general-purpose operating system such as a Microsoft® operatingsystem, UNIX®, or Linux® operating system.

The memory 52 additionally stores program code and data for providing aresource application 66 that allows users to request and receiveresources via the network interface 60. One possible embodiment of aresource application 66 is a Web browser software package that, whenexecuted by the processor 50, displays configurable markup documents,such as the sample Web pages shown in FIG. 4A through FIG. 8. Theresource application 66, however, is not limited to Web browsers, andmay be any application that can access and use a computer resource.

Also stored in the memory 52 is an annotation interface 68. Theannotation interface 68 comprises computer-executable instructions that,when executed by the processor 50, provide a tool for the user to inputannotations, as well as display prior annotations to the user. Examplesof an annotation interface 68 in the form of a toolbar is depicted anddescribed herein, though the annotation interface 68 is not limited to atoolbar implementation. The annotation interface 68 may be provided by awholly separate application executing on the client system 12, it may beprovided by a software process hosted and operated by the annotationserver 22 or other computing device, or it may be integrated intoanother application, such as a toolbar that is added to an existingbrowser application. The annotation interface 68 in this example maycommunicate with an annotation server 22 (FIG. 3C) via the networkinterface 60.

The video display adapter 54 provides display signals to a local display(not shown in FIG. 3A) permitting a user 18 to observe and interact withthe client system 12. The input/output interface 58 likewisecommunicates with external devices not shown in FIG. 2, such as a mouse,keyboard, scanner, pen, or other input device that can be operated bythe user 18.

FIG. 3B depicts an exemplary computer architecture for a resourceserver, such as the resource server 10 shown in FIG. 1. A resourceserver 10 is not necessary to practice the invention, but may beprovided for delivering one or more requested resources to a user. Theresource server 10 may be operated by the same entity that operates theannotation server 22 (depicted in FIG. 3C) or may be operated by anunrelated third party. The functions of the resource server 10 and theannotation server 22 may even be provided by the same computing system.

The exemplary resource server 10 shown in FIG. 3B includes manycomponents that may operate in a manner similar to those componentsdescribed above in FIG. 3A with respect to the client system 12. Theresource server 10 may include a processor 70 in communication with amemory 72, a display adapter 74, a computer-readable medium drive 76, aninput/output interface 78, and a network interface 80, allcommunicatively connected by a bus 82. The memory 72, as shown, storesan operating system 92 that controls the general operation of theresource server 10.

The memory 72 additionally stores program code and data for providing aresource manager 94 that interacts with one or more resources 84. Asdepicted in FIG. 3B, the resources 84 may include such items as Webpages 86, software processes 88, and/or hardware devices 90, that areaddressable by a network address. In response to receiving a request fora resource identified by a network address, the resource manager 94directs one or more of the resources 84 to be delivered to the user(e.g., via the network interface 80).

FIG. 3C depicts an exemplary computer architecture for an annotationserver, such as the annotation server 22 shown in FIG. 1, suitable foruse in implementing one or more embodiments of the invention. As withthe client system 12 and resource server 10, the annotation server 22has a network interface 110 that includes the necessary hardware andsoftware to allow the annotation server 22 to communicate with othercomputing devices connected to the network 16. Furthermore, theannotation server 22 includes several components that may operate in amanner as described above, including a processor 100, a memory 102, adisplay adapter 104, a computer-readable medium drive 106 and aninput/output interface 108, all communicatively connected to each otherand to the network interface 110 by a communication bus 112.

The memory 102 includes an operating system 114 that, when executed bythe processor 100, controls the general operation of the annotationserver 22. Further included in the memory 102 is program code and datathat, when executed by the processor 100, provide a resource addressanalyzer 116 and a database manager 118.

When a network address is received by the annotation server 22 inconnection with a user, the resource address analyzer 116 operates onthe network address to identify the network domain of the resource, asdescribed earlier in block 34 of FIG. 2. The resource address analyzer116 communicates the network domain to the database manager 118. Thedatabase manager 118 uses the network domain to query the annotationdatabase 24 to determine whether the user has previously stored anannotation in association with the network domain of the resource. Theannotation database 24 may be physically housed within the annotationserver 22 as shown in FIG. 3C, or may be located remotely from theannotation server 22, as shown in FIG. 1. When remotely located, theannotation database 24 may communicate with the annotation server 22 bya direct communication link as depicted in FIG. 1, or by networkcommunication.

The annotation database 24 may be comprised of a large capacity storagedevice that contains data structures suitable for storing annotations inassociation with a user identity and the network address of a resource.The data structures in the annotation database 24 may be organized inany suitable fashion, including the form of a table.

If the database manager 118 determines from the annotation database 24that the user has previously stored an annotation in association withthe received network address, the database manager 118 retrieves theannotation from the database 24 and communicates it to the client system12 via the network interface 110. The retrieved annotation may then bedisplayed to the user in an annotation interface at the client system12.

Described next in connection with FIGS. 4A and 4B is a specific exampleof a resource application 66 (FIG. 3A) in the form of a Web browser 120.Integrated with the Web browser 120 is an annotation interface 68 (FIG.3A) in the form of a toolbar 130 (FIG. 4B).

In FIG. 4A, the Web browser 120 includes a display area 122 forproviding a resource, such as a Web browser, document, or softwareprocess. Specifically, the Web page 120 in FIG. 4A features a sampleproduct manual document 124 in PDF format.

The product manual is identified by a network address in the form of aURL as shown in the address block 126. When a user enters the URL intothe Web browser 120, the Web browser requests the particular resource(here, the product manual) from a server (here, one or more resourceservers identified by “www.cordlessphone.com”).

The Web browser 120 further includes a control 128 that a user mayoperate to reveal an annotation interface having an annotation field fordisplaying and receiving annotations from the user. The control 128 maybe a button labeled “Diary” as shown, or any other form of control, suchas a hypertext link, check box, etc.

When the user activates the control 128, an annotation interface 130 asshown in FIG. 4B is revealed to the user. In one suitable embodiment,the annotation interface 130 is a toolbar that is incorporated into anInternet Explorer® browser from Microsoft Corporation by developing a“COM” component implementing the interfaces IobjectWithSitelmp1,InputObject, and IdeskBand, and registering the component with theoperating system, as described in greater detail by “Programming andReusing the Browser”, available athttp://msdn.microsofl.com/library/default.asp?url=/workshop/browser/progr_browser_node_entry.asp, which is incorporated herein by reference. See also “ReusingInternet Explorer and the WebBrowser Control: An Array of Options”provided athttp://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/library/en-us/dnwebgen/html/reusebovw.asp,incorporated herein by reference.

In some embodiments, controls may be displayed within the context of theWeb page that is currently displayed in the browser. In otherembodiments, controls may be displayed outside the browser window, suchas in a separate window, on the desktop, or in the desktop taskbar. Inyet other embodiments, visible controls are not displayed, but the useris permitted to use other forms of computer input, such as typing a keyor a key combination, or by speaking a voice command, to activate thecontrol.

In any event, activating the control 128 causes the annotation interface130 to appear. The annotation interface 130 includes an annotation field132. When the annotation is larger than the space provided by theannotation field 132, the annotation field 132 may further include ascroll bar control 134 that allows the user to scroll through theannotation.

Initially, before the user has annotated the resource being provided,the annotation field 132 may be blank. As the user has thoughts,opinions, or information in regard to the resource, the user may enteran annotation in the annotation field 132. The annotation interface 130may be configured to receive annotations in the form of text and/orgraphics (e.g., an image or handwritten input, for example, as enteredinto a Tablet PC). The annotation interface 130 may also be configuredto receive an annotation that includes a link that identifies anotherresource on the computer network. Annotations entered into theannotation interface 130 are stored in association with the user and thenetwork address of the resource being provided.

FIG. 5 illustrates a Web browser 140 that includes several aspectssimilar to those described above in the Web browser 120. The Web browser140 includes a display area 142 that, in this example, displays adocument 144. The document 144 is identified in the network by the URLin the address field 146. Activation of a control 148 has caused anannotation interface 150 to appear to the user.

The annotation interface 150 is shown in the form of a toolbar similarto the annotation interface 130 described above, but with somedifferences. In particular, the annotation field 134 in this caseincludes three lines of text, as opposed to two lines. The annotationinterface 150 also includes a control 156 that the user may activate toallow others to receive and view the user's annotation in the annotationfield 152. Another control 158, when activated by the user, causesannotations written and made public by others to be viewable by theuser. Similar to the annotation field 132, the annotation field 152includes a scroll bar 154 that the user may operate to view annotationsthat are larger than the annotation field 152.

The display size of the annotation interface 150 may be fixed at apredetermined size and provide an annotation field with a defined numberof lines. Alternatively, the display size of the annotation interfacemay be dynamic such that the size is adjusted according to the size ofannotation in the annotation field. For example, if a user's annotationfits on one line, the display size of the annotation interface 150 maybe adjusted to show only one line in the annotation field 152. If theuser's annotation occupies two or three lines, the display size of theannotation interface 150 may be adjusted accordingly to display two orthree lines in the annotation field 152. A maximum display size of theannotation interface 150 (e.g., three lines, in this example), may bedefined if desired. If the size of the annotation in the annotationfield 152 exceeds the display size of the annotation interface 150, ascroll bar control 154 is provided.

FIG. 6 shows the Web browser 140 depicted in FIG. 5 wherein a user hasactivated the controls 156 and 158 described above. When the useractivates the “Make Public” control 156 (here, in the form of acheckbox), the Web browser 140 sends a command to the annotation server22 indicating that the annotation displayed in the annotation field 152(and possibly stored in the annotation database 24) may be distributedto other users, preferably those users who have indicated an interest inreceiving annotations from others. In a similar fashion, activation ofthe “View Public” control 158 causes the Web browser 140 to send acommand to the annotation server 22 indicating that the user desires toview annotations relating to the resource as received and made public byother users. The annotation server 22 queries the annotation database 24with the network address of the resource to find those annotationsassociated with the resource and made public by the originating users.In the example of FIG. 6, activation of the control 158 causes thedisplay area 142 to include a window, frame, or other portion 159 fordisplaying the public annotations. Where there are many publicannotations, the display portion 159 may include the first few words ofeach annotation and provide a hypertext link or other control that theuser may activate to view the entirety of an annotation.

FIG. 7 illustrates yet another embodiment of the invention in which aWeb browser 160 has a display area 162 showing a document 164. Thenetwork address of the document is shown in the address field 166. Aswith embodiments previously described, the Web browser 160 includes acontrol 168 that, when activated by the user, reveals an annotationinterface 170. The annotation interface 170, in this case, has a fixedsize of one line and includes an annotation field 172.

Further included in the annotation interface 170 is a control 174 that,when activated by the user, opens a new annotation field separate fromthe toolbar for displaying the annotation to the user. In thisillustration, the new annotation field is a separate window 176displayed over the top of the document 164. In other embodiments, thecontrol 174, when activated, may act to simply expand the annotationfield 172 appearing in the annotation interface 170.

Preferably the new annotation field 176 is configured to receiveannotations from the user in addition to displaying annotations to theuser. Furthermore, annotations displayed in the new annotation field 176may be modified, as desired, by the user.

The new annotation field 176 depicted in FIG. 7 includes furthercontrols 178 and 179 in the form of hypertext links labeled “Save/Close”and “Cancel”, respectively. User activation of the control 178 by theuser causes the Web browser 160 to transmit a command to the annotationserver 22 to store the annotation presently displayed in the newannotation field 176 in the annotation database 24. As earlierdescribed, the annotation is stored in association with the user and thenetwork address of the resource. The control 178 further closes the newannotation field 176, thus enabling the user to view the resource shownin the display area 162.

The control 179, when activated by the user, causes the Web browser 160to simply close the new annotation field 176 without having theannotation displayed therein stored by the annotation server 22.

Because annotations are stored in association with a user's identity,the annotation server 22 may generate one or more reports for the userthat describe the resources and annotations stored by the user in regardto the resources. FIG. 8, for example, shows a typical Web browser inwhich a report is displayed to the user listing the resources andannotations associated therewith currently stored in association withthe user. The Web browser 180 includes a display area 182 that includesan “annotated resources” report 184 for the user. Since annotations aretypically personal to the user, the annotation server 22 preferablyprovides a login routine by which the user may securely enter theannotation server 22 and access his or her account. The network addressof the user's account, after login, is shown in the address field 186.As with earlier described embodiments, the Web browser 180 also includesa control 188 that reveals an annotation interface 190 to the user.

The annotated resources report 184 includes information identifying theresources 192 and annotations 194 received from the user. In the exampleshown, each of the resources 192 has an annotation 194 appearingadjacent thereto. Preferably, the annotations are provided to the userin a field that accepts modifications from the user. The annotationserver 22 may store any modifications entered by the user at the timethe user is editing the report. Alternatively, the modifications, ifany, may be stored when the user navigates away from the report orotherwise closes the Web browser 180. Additional controls 196 areprovided to permit the user to delete one or more annotations orresources from the annotated resources report 184. Lastly, a logout link198 is provided to permit the user to affirmatively logout of theannotation server 22.

As will be appreciated from the foregoing, in some embodiments theannotation interface may be integrated into or otherwise communicatewith the user's resource application 66 (e.g., Web browser) toautomatically detect when the user is requesting a resource with anetwork address. For example, where an annotation interface is providedin the form of a toolbar or browser extension to the Internet Explorer®browser from Microsoft Corporation, the browser extension can beconfigured to recognize when a network address is entered into thebrowser for purposes of navigating to a resource. Such functionality ina browser extension is further described in “Web Accessories” availableathttp://msdn.microsoft.com/workshop/browser/accessory/overview/overview.asp,which is incorporated herein by reference.

Embodiments of the invention may also be provided in the form of acomputer-readable medium whose contents cause a computing system toundertake actions as described above. For example, a computer-readablemedium may be inserted into the computer-readable medium drive 106 asshown in FIG. 3C to cause the annotation server 22 to receive a networkaddress for a resource on a computer network, receive an annotation froma user in association with the resource, and store the annotation inassociation with the user and the network address of the resource in anannotation database 24, without requiring a separate action from theuser to store the annotation. The computer-readable medium may befurther configured with contents causing the computing system to performother actions described above, such as retrieving annotations from theannotation database 24 and providing reports to users of the informationstored in the annotation database 24.

As should be understood from the foregoing, an annotation may be storedin association with a portion or all of the address identifying theresource to which the annotation pertains. In some embodiments where auser's annotation is stored with the full address of the resource,computer processes may analyze the resource address and parse outvarious levels or portions of the address, especially where a networkdomain or file hierarchy is concerned, when storing the annotation. Withresource addresses parsed in that manner, a user may request and obtainan annotated resources report (see, e.g., FIG. 8) that aggregatesannotations at any desired level. For example, in reference to FIG. 8, auser requesting to see all annotations associated with “www.webnews.com”would cause the annotation database to return the two annotations having“www.webnews.com” at the network domain level (thus effectively ignoringthe sublevel designations “/international” and “/domestic”). Furtherparsing can be performed to remove extraneous information such asreference tags or session identifiers that are specific to the instancein which the resource is provided, prior to storing an annotation.

Annotations may further be stored in association with one or morecategories. For example, resources such as merchant Web sites may beassociated with a “shopping sites” category, news resources may beassociated with a “news sites” category, photograph resources may beassociated with a “photographs” category, etc. Subcategories may also bedefined as desired. An annotation interface 68 as described above mayinclude a control, such as a button or drop down box that listscategories which the user can select to designate a category for theannotation currently in the annotation interface. The user may changethe category designation at any time, or choose to have no categorydesignation at all. Storing annotations in association with categoriesmay allow the user to request and obtain an annotated resources report(e.g., FIG. 8) listing only those annotations in categories (orsubcategories) of interest. In some embodiments, the category of anannotation may be stored in the annotation database as metadata with theannotation.

Unlike metadata stored directly with a resource (such as documentcreation data in a word processing document), embodiments of theinvention may allow a user to privately annotate a resource on a localcomputing system (e.g., “image045.jpg” in FIG. 8) and then share theresource with someone else without sharing the annotation. Inembodiments where the user's annotations are stored in an annotationserver connected to a network, the user may also access annotations forlocal resources from remote computing systems, even though the actualresource (on the local computing system) is not available on the remotecomputing system.

As noted above, a user's annotations are stored in association with theuser's identity. It should be understood that a “user” in this regardmay include individual or groups of people, computing processes ordevices. For example, the annotation interface 68 referenced in FIG. 3Amay have an assigned identifier that is unique in the annotationdatabase 24 (FIG. 3C). The annotation interface 68 may transmit thisunique identifier to the annotation server 22 when sending an annotationand associated resource address to the annotation server 22 for storage.In circumstances such as this, the “user” is the annotation interface 68which may be operated by multiple individuals.

In other circumstances, a “user” may be an individual person. Forexample, the annotation interface 68 may be configured to allow a personto “log in” or otherwise identify himself or herself to the annotationinterface. Thereafter, annotations submitted to the annotation server 22by the annotation interface 68 may include the person's identity.Different persons may thus use the same annotation interface 68, but bylogging in or otherwise identifying themselves, they may have theirannotations stored separately under the correct user identity.

Combinations of the foregoing may also be used. For example, anannotation interface 68 having a unique identifier may identify thecurrent “user”, or person, to the annotation server 22 when the person“logs in” to the annotation interface 68. The annotation server 22 maynote the user identity with the unique identifier of the annotationinterface 68. Thereafter, annotations received from the annotationinterface 68 (identified by the unique identifier) are stored by theannotation server 22 in association 30 with the currently-identifieduser of the annotation interface 68, until the user “logs out” or adifferent user “logs in” to the annotation interface 68.

In other embodiments, the annotation interface 68 may be configured witha control, such as a button or drop down box that lists users which aperson may select to designate the current user of the annotationinterface 68. Depending on the particular embodiment, formal log in andlog out procedures that require authentication may not be necessary.

Furthermore, an individual person may define different profiles that theperson could use to submit annotations using the annotation interface68. For example, a person could have a “business” profile set up forannotating resources while at work, and a “personal” profile forannotating resources while at home. Embodiments of the invention mayconsider each of these profiles as a different “user”. Easy-to-usecontrols in the annotation interface 68, such as a button or drop downbox, may be provided as described above to allow the person to selectthe current profile with which annotations should be associated.Preferably, the annotation interface 68 enables the person to easilyswitch profiles as desired when annotating different resources.

Alternatively, instead of defining different profiles as different“users”, other embodiments of the invention may allow a user to definedifferent roles or locations for annotations, similar to definingcategories as discussed above. For example, the user could designate a“work” role or location while annotating at work, and a “home” role orlocation when annotating at home. The user need not log in or out ofthese roles, but with appropriate controls in the annotation interface,the user can easily switch between these roles. The particular roleassociated with an annotation may be stored as metadata with theannotation.

While several embodiments of the invention have been illustrated anddescribed above, it will be appreciated that various changes can be madetherein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.The scope of the invention, therefore, should be determined from thefollowing claims and equivalents thereto.

1. (canceled)
 2. A method for automatically linking annotations toresources implemented on a computer network, the method comprising:displaying, by a first client device, an indication of a resource havingan associated network address unique to the resource; receiving, by afirst instance of an annotation interface implemented on the firstclient device, an indication of a new annotation or a modifiedannotation associated with the displayed resource and the associatednetwork address unique to the resource, wherein the new annotation ormodified annotation originates from use of a second instance of theannotation interface implemented on a second client device on which theresource is also displayed, and wherein the new annotation or modifiedannotation is stored with a reference to the network address in a remoteannotation database associated with both the first and the secondinstances of the annotation interface; and displaying, by the firstclient device, the new annotation or modified annotation along with theresource.
 3. The method of claim 2, further comprising, receiving, bythe first client device, a history of the new annotation or modifiedannotation associated with the displayed resource.
 4. The method ofclaim 2, further comprising, receiving, by the first client device, froma server, a list identifying at least one resource for which anannotation is stored in the remote annotation database, wherein the listidentifies a plurality of resources and one or more annotationsassociated respectively with one of the plurality of resources.
 5. Themethod of claim 2, further comprising, designating, by the first clientdevice via the annotation interface, the new annotation or modifiedannotation as to be made available to each of the first client deviceand second client device.
 6. The method of claim 4, further comprising,displaying, by the first client device, the list identifying at leastone resource for which an annotation is stored in the remote annotationdatabase.
 7. The method of claim 2, wherein the new annotation ormodified annotation is displayed over the resource.
 8. The method ofclaim 2, wherein the new annotation or modified annotation is storedwith the reference to the network address in the remote annotationdatabase by a server in communication with the remote annotationdatabase.
 9. A client device for automatically linking annotations toresources implemented on a computer network, comprising: memory; and aprocessor coupled to the memory, the processor configured to: display anindication of a resource having an associated network address unique tothe resource, receive, by a first instance of an annotation interfaceimplemented on the client device, an indication of a new annotation or amodified annotation associated with the displayed resource and theassociated network address unique to the resource, wherein the newannotation or modified annotation originates from use of a secondinstance of the annotation interface implemented on another clientdevice on which the resource is also displayed, and wherein the newannotation or modified annotation is stored with a reference to thenetwork address in a remote annotation database associated with both thefirst and the second instances of the annotation interface; and displaythe new annotation or modified annotation along with the resource. 10.The client device of claim 9, wherein the processor is furtherconfigured to receive a history of the new annotation or modifiedannotation associated with the resource.
 11. The client device of claim9, wherein the processor is further configured to receive a listidentifying at least one resource for which an annotation is stored inthe remote annotation database, wherein the list identifies a pluralityof resources and one or more annotations associated respectively withone of the plurality of resources.
 12. The client device of claim 9,wherein the processor is further configured to designate, via theannotation interface, the new annotation or modified annotation as to bemade available to each of the client device and another client device.13. The client device of claim 11, wherein the processor is furtherconfigured to display the list identifying at least one resource forwhich an annotation is stored in the remote annotation database.
 14. Theclient device of claim 9, wherein the new annotation or modifiedannotation is displayed over the resource.
 15. A non-transitorycomputer-readable medium storing executable instructions that, inresponse to execution, cause a first client device to performoperations, comprising: displaying, by the first client device, anindication of a resource having an associated network address unique tothe resource; receiving, by a first instance of an annotation interfaceimplemented on the first client device, an indication of a newannotation or a modified annotation associated with the displayedresource and the associated network address unique to the resource,wherein the new annotation or modified annotation originates from use ofa second instance of the annotation interface implemented on a secondclient device on which the resource is also displayed, and wherein thenew annotation or modified annotation is stored with a reference to thenetwork address in a remote annotation database associated with both thefirst and the second instances of the annotation interface; anddisplaying, by the first client device, the new annotation or modifiedannotation along with the resource.
 16. The non-transitorycomputer-readable medium of claim 15, further comprising, instructionsthat, in response to execution, cause the first client device to performoperations further comprising: receiving, by the first client device, ahistory of the new annotation or modified annotation associated with theresource.
 17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15,further comprising, instructions that, in response to execution, causethe first client device to perform operations further comprising:receiving, by the first client device, from a server, a list identifyingat least one resource for which an annotation is stored in the remoteannotation database, wherein the list identifies a plurality ofresources and one or more annotations associated respectively with oneof the plurality of resources.
 18. The non-transitory computer-readablemedium of claim 15, further comprising, instructions that, in responseto execution, cause the first client device to perform operationsfurther comprising: designating, by the first client device via theannotation interface, new annotation or modified annotation as to bemade available to each of the first client device and second clientdevice.
 19. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 17,further comprising, instructions that, in response to execution, causethe first client device to perform operations further comprising:displaying, by the first client device, the list identifying at leastone resource for which an annotation is stored in the remote annotationdatabase.
 20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15,wherein the new annotation or modified annotation is displayed over theresource.